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11.08.2004

So long Seattle

I was shocked to see that the Seattle's Best at Chicago and Wabash was closed yesterday. The lights were on, but the place looked empty, so my husband approached the door to see what was going on. At that moment, the manager put up a handwritten sign on the door that said, "Closed for business. Goodbye."

I already knew that they were thinking of closing, but the manager had said in the past that it could take up to a year. And now it's gone. I'm sure other people are not happy about the store's fate. I spent a lot of time there, especially last summer, when I talked about writing and academic life with a professor friend of mine. I read most of the first draft of her novel there. I also did a lot of work there before and after I moved to this area. The manager was talkative and friendly, which made the place even more interesting.

I read a while ago that Seattle's Best will be moving to hundreds of Borders stores throughout the country. Here's a slick announcement that I saw:

"With the conversion to SBC cafes, Borders is improving on what is already a compelling distinction in our stores. Seattle's Best Coffee brings tremendous specialty coffee expertise and a strong brand to complement what we do best, which is deliver a superior shopping experience for book, music and movie lovers."

Seattle's Best certainly has better drinks than what's served at Borders right now, but it won't be the same.